Download The Roman Express Cleopatra is DEAD!

The Roman Express
All the News Romans Need to Know
August 4, 30 BC
Alexandria, Egypt
Cleopatra is DEAD!
"She was not exactly beautiful but she
had a sweet voice and great charm.
Something about her was irresistible"Plutarch.
Written by: Alissius Vitalio
Now that the beloved Pharaoh
of Egypt, wife of both Julius Caesar and
Marc Antony, and mother to four lovely
children has passed away, we would
like to take to take the time to remember
her. This is one woman who left this
Earth too young.
Cleopatra's reign was from 51
BC to 30 BC. She began to rule with her
father, Ptolemy XII, at the age of
eighteen. She shared the power with her
brother, Ptolemy XIII, after their father
died. She may have been perfectly fine
with the shared power but her brother
certainly was not! He made plots to kill
her just to have total control. This forced
Cleopatra to flee her homeland and
gather an army to protect her and defeat
Ptolemy XIII. She looked for the most
powerful army, the Roman army, for
help. There she found the general,
Julius Caesar to help her.
Julius Caesar played a BIG role
in the life of Cleopatra. He was very
willing to help her but that wasn't the
only thing he did for her. The Roman
army put Cleopatra back in power,
defeating her brother Ptolemy XIII, but
this time she ruled with her other brother
Ptolemy XIV. Soon after in 47 BC, she
had her first child, a baby boy,
Caesarion. Both Julius and Cleopatra
were very happy to share a child
of their own. A year passed till they
returned to Rome, together. Things after
that time got rough. In 44 BC, Julius
Caesar was assassinated, leaving
Cleopatra to return to Egypt to rule.
Soon after Caesar died, so did
Cleopatra's brother, Ptolemy XIV,
possibly under her orders. This did not
make our people very happy. The
people of Egypt were already upset that
she had left to control Rome but now
she could have possibly murdered her
own bother! Meanwhile, the Roman's
had problems of their own also.
Octavian, the nephew of Julius Caesar,
and Mark Antony were in a battle for
power. Mark and Cleopatra worked
together to stay in power but that led to
more than just a friendly favor. They
soon had twins, Cleopatra and
Alexander, in 40 BC. Mark was sent
back to Rome, made up with Octavian
then married his sister. He returned
back to Egypt in 37 BC and things got
rough again. Mark and Octavian were
enemies again. Two years later Mark
and Cleopatra had another son,
Ptolemy.
The death of Cleopatra stemmed
from earlier battles with Octavian. He
persuaded the Roman senate to go to
war with Cleopatra. This war was two
years long and ended with Octavian's
defeat, causing Antony and Cleopatra to
kill themselves. Cleopatra's first son,
Caesarion was captured and executed,
soon after. Cleopatra was a very
interesting woman who left her mark
wherever she went.
Source: Exploring Ancient Civilizations by ChavinDong Son Culture